Although I could be fired for asking out loud, your city council have all been wondering if other towns are shrinking too, and if so, what’s being done to stop the trend or reverse it. They ask as if we’d already proclaimed our town is getting smaller, which we haven’t, but should. The change is almost imperceptible but measurable and as real as the sun setting earlier each day by a minute, or a lover going vividly gray, or taxes rising relative to lot size. Last spring, a surveyor sent to stake a home-site reported the first anomaly but blamed his instruments. Now we know that every property is verifiably smaller; we know the rate at which they’re shrinking, and how soon the first houses will stick their toes beyond the borders of the yards that should contain them and into the vegetable gardens of the lovely young neighbor who digs the beds in shorts and little else to nudge and shyly part her tender shoots. Let me be clear, our houses are no smaller. Still formed of six-inch bricks, of 2x4s, of lumber cut to lengths that match our rulers, they cover the same ground as ever. It’s the ground they cover that hasn’t stopped diminishing. And the trouble isn’t limited to home-sites. Parks and streets are shrinking as well— parking spaces! Our cars, already too big, drive with two tires on the sidewalk now or sideswipe one another. Of course as citizens, you’ll want the fairness question answered. If other towns are expanding, are they towns that somehow deserve our land? Or can we annex them to get it back? For now, let’s be happy we fit inside our houses, close as they may be to one another, and find ways to get comfortable with our neighbors.

Whimsical fun. But it is interesting to think about what it would take to get us to live more comfortably with our neighbors.

You caught me being serious, rebel! I admit I’m not quite capable of straight whimsy. As for the comfort of good neighbors, it appears our narrator has a plan brewing for at least one of his. Thanks as always for your visit and so prompt comment!
–David

I’m so relieved you told us about the incredible shrinking towns…I thought it was just me getting fatter. There are some neighbours I wouldn’t mind getting to know better, indeed I wouldn’t mind snuggling up to No. 37 with the floppy hair and the gorgeous grin…but I draw the line at sharing my balcony with No. 33, you know…that woman who leans over the balustrade flashing her unmentionables at our postman, greeting him with “hello big boy” every time he comes to deliver my overdue bills.

That’s the spirit, Maria! This global (if localized) phenomenon will create trouble for amateurs, it’s true, but eventually everyone will have to accommodate everyone, even No. 37. Presumably the postman has learned to tolerate her unmentionables? Thank you for shedding local light on your particular shrinking neighborhood! :)
–David

Well, if the whole universe is shrinking, as some say, this shouldn’t be a problem, should it?
Sure, that would be OK, but then the rulers would be shrinking too, and the people who use them. My town, apparently, has a different problem: shrinking land, but everything else, not. Either way, we’re feeling squeezed. Thanks, QS! I like your optimism.
–David

Reminds me of the scene in Men in Black where they are supposed to save an entire planet the size of a marble hanging from a cat’s neck.
Well, our planet is a marble hanging from a cat’s neck, isn’t it? Have you seen how vast it is out there? :)
–David

A vivid account consistent with what happens here in Britain. Does Mrs DB know about “lovely young neighbor”?
Never too late to comment, gg! That’s Mrs. dbd, to you, and no, I’m sure she doesn’t know the fictional lovely young neighbor. Thanks!
–David

Is the world we live in getting smaller or are we getting bigger? I read something recently on going green and if it’s best for our environment. Some agree that our SUV cars use way too much gas causing excessive carbon dioxide to raise into the atmosphere polluting and harming many lives. Is this the similar view you believe causes people to.. (and I’m paraphrasing something I remember you say in the beginning of school semester) .. live in the same housing development where everyone owns a lawn mower, but no one offers to share or save on money? Sure it’s just exhaust people seem to think, but this is so harmful to the environment and people living in this world, like your story no town is better than the next, maybe people should re- evaluate their next move and make it their best move, not for the sake of selves but everyone else…

Yes, Lauren, those nagging questions of mine all do seem to be related. (So, you really do pay attention in class, eh!?) Why do we each need a lawnmower, when at most we use them ten times a year, one hour each use, and could easily share? If I were writing a Universal Value Question on this topic right now, I’d say, “A lawnmower is: A) The most sophisticated agricultural machine I could ever hope to own, B) A nuisance I have to keep in top repair or it doesn’t start when I need it, C) Essential to keep my property looking presentable, D) An expense I would gladly do without but feel compelled to own.”
–David

LOL yes I pay attention.. I remember a lot of stuff that we discuss in class. I think people should share more, or at least help out someone in need even if they feel that the help won’t arrive on it’s on, without someone else taking the initiative to do something. Well my family members and I have gone extra mile to help neighbors during the winter season, using our snowblower for when the snow is so unbearable and you can’t see your car( Jersey Weather)!! I would go with answer B. And with the lawn hardly ever growing correctly, and spring-summer seasons that come and go so quickly, the family lawnmower is a hassle.. and let’s not even get into repairs!! lol